Meaning & use

love child

noun·Advanced

A child born to parents who are not married to each other (dated and somewhat informal).

See it in a sentence

The biography revealed that the composer had a love child few people knew about.

Rumors spread through the small town about the mayor's alleged love child.

A note on using this word

Love child is an older, softer term; modern usage generally avoids labeling children by their parents' marital status at all.

Words with a similar meaning

This term is best learned through its definition and examples.

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “love child”, then compare your use with the examples above.

Your draft stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.